NIU shootings raise many scary questions
I've been sitting here listening to all the news about the NIU shooting. My heart goes out to so many - the victims, their families, the students, the community, the shooter and his family.
How messed up do you have to be to do this? No one in their rational mind does something like this. They say the shooter was on medication and had stopped taking it recently and had become erratic. Obviously, this was a very troubled young man.
Our mental heath care system needs strengthening. I know we can't hold someone down and force them to take their medication, but there has to be a better way to monitor people with issues. It's just so scary.
This was a young man who made the dean's list at NIU. It appears he did all the right things and you would assume it takes quite a stable mind to do this. So what happened? Why did he drive 140 miles north to his old university to do this?
It's just so strange and raises so many questions. And some news reports make it worse with speculation and bringing up stuff they know nothing about. They broadcast stuff before they have facts and bring in "experts" who speculate and have nothing to do with the case. The sensationalism this creates is haunting in itself.
The photo of this young man is scary because he looks so normal. But in today's society, what is normal anymore? How is someone able to purchase so many guns so quickly without raising any red flags? Isn't there a system to cross-check when several gun checks are being run, especially so close together? They say guns don't kill, people do and that may be true, but this type of accessibility to guns and the ability to buy so many aids an individual's ability to kill. And, they say he was able to purchase ammo online.
This was such a huge tragedy that should have never happened. But for some reason, these horrible tragedies continue to happen. And there are always just as many questions as before. It's truly scary.
Cheryl Bast
South Elgin